The only good is knowledge, and the only evil is ignorance. -Herodotus

Aug 16, 2015

Welfare Benefits

The Cato Institute released an updated 2014 study (the original study was in 1955) of how welfare recipients get more compared to a minimum wage job earner in 33 states and the District of Columbia.

According to the study, welfare benefits have increased faster than the national minimum wage. Also, when compared to workers who are paid the minimum wage of $10.00 per hour (or less depending upon each state), welfare recipients get an equivalent of more than $15.00 per hour in 13 states.

Therefore, it is now more profitable to just sit at home and watch TV than it is to earn an honest day’s pay.

Below is the list of the 33 states plus the District of Columbia, where welfare recipients receive benefits per year, which are actually higher than some US worker on minimum wage.

It is worth nothing that, today, the average middle class annual income in the USA is $50,000 (down from $54,000 at the beginning of the latest recession).

So, per the list above, it means that a welfare recipient in Hawaii, the District of Columbia, and Massachusetts actually gets more than the average "middle class" worker!

Is it any wonder that in the USA today, more people prefer to stay home rather than look for a job?Also, worth noting is the FACT that, the actual "U.S. unemployment rate" is literally much higher than the news media's reported current 7 percent "U.S. unemployment rate".

[According to some estimates, the true unemployment rate in the USA since Obama took office had steadily risen to as high as 17 percent or even higher, and may currently -- most likely -- be around 15 to 16 percent compared to the most recent news media report of 7 percent.]

Moreover, with the US economy in shambles and a national debt of over $17 trillion, the annual life-time retirement pension for each and every US politician/federal bureaucrat is as follows:

Speaker of the House ....$223,500.00 per year for life

Majority/Minority House/Senate Leader....$193,400.00 per year for life

Member of Congress (Congressman/Congresswoman or Senator, who serves even just one year of her/his term)....$174,000.00 per year for life;

However, the average annual salary of a:

Grade School Teacher....$40,065.00

U.S. Soldier (lowest rank/buck private, who is actually on duty 24/7, 365 days/year, and who can be sent anytime to some war zone, i.e., Afghanistan)....$38,000.00!